Double grid broiler, toaster or the like, and method of making same



Oct. 15, 1957 J. R. LAWRENCE 2,899,580

DOUBLE GRID EEOILER, ToAsTER 0R TEE MAKING SAME 2 Sheets-Shea LIKE, AND METHOD OF BN'VNTR John Rcfm vLaw Bcf?.

Oct. 15, 1957 J. R. L RENCE v 2,809,580

DOUBLE G BROI TOAS OR THE LIKE, METHOD OF MAK N SAME Filed March M, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 5I aNvENToR J h Ri h O C GWre United breites @arent DUBLE GRID BROILER, TAS'IER 0R THE LiKE, AND NIETHOD F MAME SAB/E John Richard Lawrence, Worcester, Mass., assigner to The Washburn Company, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application March 24, 1954, Serial No. 418,298 2 Claims. (Cl. 99-492) This invention relates to improvements in the construction and manufacture of broilers, toasters and similar devices of the type adapted to grip a piece of meat or other food products between a pair of opposed wire grills or grids.

ln conventional broilers and toasters of this two-grill type, it is the customary practice to run the wires of one grill at right angles to the wires of the opposed grill in order to obtain, between the opposed upper and lower sets of wires, an evenly distributed multiplicity of crossings, so as to resist in all directions any slippage of the interposed food. This prior art 90 orientation of the wires of the respective grill members imposes increased costs in the manufacture of double grid broilers, toasters, etc., since separate and diierent facilities (welding "gs and the lilse) are required for the uniting of the wires of the respective grill members to their frames.

My invention, as hereinafter described, provides a double grid broiler or toaster which obtains this same evenly distributed multiplicity of crossings between the opposed upper and lower sets of grid wires, but nevertheless permits the wires of both grill members to run in the saine direction. This latter feature enables both grills of my broiler or toaster to be constructed, as hereinafter described, as substantial duplicates of one another, using a single welding jig for the construction of both members.

Other and further advantageous features of this invention will hereinafter more fully appear from a detailed description of the drawings in which Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of my improved broiler or toaster, showing the two grids thereof in their opened-up inoperative positions.

Fig. 2 is a larger scale plan view, showing the multiplicity of crossings of the upper and lower grid wires when the two grids are folded together, in their operative positions.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a single welding that can be used for making both of the grids of my improved broiler or toaster.

Fig, 5 is a front sectional view taken along section line X-X of Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 6 is a side sectional view taken along section line Y-Y of Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows.

My improved broiler or toaster (Figs. l, 2 and 3) provides a pair of companion hinged-together grids, designated A and B in Fig. 1, which are of equal size and similar construction. rid A has a frame 1, made by bending into rectangular form a single length of relatively heavy wire, whose ends are brought into substantially abutting relation at a narrow gap 2 located midway of one long side of the rectangle. ln the fabrication of frame its opposite long side, as best shown in Fig. 3, is formed with a pair of spaced lateral offsets 2i?, 2d, for a purpose to be hereinafter described. Running lengthwise of frame 1, and on the opposite face thereof from offsets 20, 20, are a plurality of equally-spaced parallel zigzag wires 3, 3 of somewhat lighter gauge than the frame wire, the ends of these grid wires 3, 3 being welded at 4 and 5 to the opposite ends of frame 1.

As shown in Fig. l, the companion grid B is substantially identical with the above-described grid A. That is to say, grid B has a rectangular wire frame 1', with a narrow gap 2 in one of its longer sides, and with its opposite longer side formed with spaced lateral offsets 2li', 20' that match the corresponding lateral offsets 20, 2d of frame l. These two pairs of matching frame member offsets are brought into opposed relation (see Fig. 3, so as to serve for the hinging together of the two frames 1 and 1', by means of suitable hinge members 17 and 1S. The latter are here shown as rectangular pieces of flat metal stock, of slightly less width than the length of each frame member olset, and having their respective end portions bent or looped around each opposed pair of offsets Ztl, 2li', to provide the required articulation between the hinge member and each of the so-connected grid frames 1 and 1', in the absence of opportunity for undue endwise displacement of said hinge members 17 and 13.

ri`he frame 1', on the opposite face thereof from its hinge oiisets 26', 20', carries a plurality of lengthwiserunning parallel zigzag grid wires 3', 3', having their ends 'welded at e and 5 to the ends of said frame i'. These grid wires 3', 3', are identical, in configuration, number, spacing and arrangement with the zigzag grid wires 3, 3 of frame 1 of the companion grid A. Furthermore, it is particularly to be noted that with the hinged-together grids A and B in side-by-side relation (the broilers opened-up or inoperative condition which is shown in Fig. l), not only are the two sets of grid wires in parallelism, but the wires 3', 3', from left to right, have exactly the same orientation with their frame member l as have the wires 3, 3, from left to right, with their frame member 1. This clearly appears from a consideration of Fig. l with the hinge members i7 and i3 removed; if grid B in that situation is shifted leftward until its frame 1 directlyvoverlies frame 1 of grid A, then all of the zigzag grid wires 3', 3 will be in exact registry with the respective corresponding zigzag grid wires 3, 3 of the other frame 1.

ln short, although the two frame members 1 and 1' of grids A and B are connected as shown in parallel, nevertheless said two grids, from the standpoint of their respective sets of zigzag wires 3, 3 and 3', 3', are in fact connected together in series by the hinge members 17 and 13. Thus it is, that when said two grids A and B, by movement about said hinge members from the positions of Fig. l, are folded together one upon the other for the retention between them of interposed food, as depicted in Fig. 2, each zigzag wire 3' of grid B will always occupy a non-registering and wholly out-of-phase relation to the zigzag wire 3 directly beneath it in the gird A. Actually, between every such upper wire 3 and its corresponding lower wire 3, there will be numerous crossings C, C, as shown in Fig. 2, and these crossings, because of being distributed in uniform fashion over the whole arca of the closed broiler or toaster, are highly eff ctive for the firm holding of all food interposed between the two grids A and B.

Each of said grids is here shown as equipped in customary fashion with a suitable handle 6, by which to efiect its movement about the hinge members 17, i8, as well as to serve, in the broilers operative position (Fig. 2) for the latters manipulation. Each handle 6 is a length of heavy gauge wire, having at 7 a 180 bend, so as form parallel spaced legs S and 9; said legs 8 and 9 are welded to their respective grid frames 1 and 1 at member .l with curved end 7 the cross members of the points .11,.12,..13and.14,. andif =desired vto .one-ormoreof the grid wires at points and 16.

The fact, as pointed out l' above, that both sets of zigzagiwiresA 3;.3 and A.3', .3' 'areforiented to their: respective:v frame members fand 15` inexactly the Vsame-fashion makes it possiblev to construct-'both grids Aland B-on one and the sameweldingL-jig. This singlewelding'jig of substantially conventional type is shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6; The illustratedV jig comprises aipair of Y parallel bars and 26-..each having aV series of -Vfshaped or chevronshaped slots27 and 28, respectively, along the lengths ofthe-bars. Thebarsare connected'lat their opposite ends to crossbars29' and 30: At'a pointintermediate theirfends, bars VZei-and 26'5are also connected to crossbar 31.' Crossbar. 29has -a longitudinal groove'l 32 adapted to'1receive: onesidey edge of frame member 1- or .1'. Groove32=has depressions-33. and-34 'which are capable of receiving offsets 20 or20 ofthe .corresponding frame member.YV Crossbar also has ahgroove 35 lcapa-.bie of receivinga side. edge of the frame member. Groove 35 likewise has depressions 35. and v37forJreceving the of`r`- set vportions of the correspondingframe member. Crossbar30 vin addition has slots 38-and 39"'which run'at rightangles to groove and .which are adapted to receive the corners'ofthe framey member. Crossbar 31A has trans` verse slots and 41 which line up with slots 38 and 39V of 'crossbar 30. Grooves 32v and` 35 :together with slots 38, 39, 4t) Vand 41 vwillreceive either the frame member 1f or the frame member 1f, so as to hold it in place securely. This jig will. permitlconstruction Yof either grill member of my broiler without necessitating anyV changes in the jig itself.

ln order to make the right-hand grill, or grill B of Fig. 1, a'frame' member 1 is placed in theV jigsuch that its hinge offsets 20 are disposed downwardlyin recesses'li and 37 of groove 35. The gap 2` will be located in groove 32 at the approximatemid-point thereof.VV A-plurality ot` zigzag members 3' 'are placed over frame mem ber 1 such that the ends of the zigzags rest on the sides of the trame member and corresponding V sections of the zigzags tit into the V-shaped slots 27 and 28 of bars 25`and 243. The ends of the zigzags are then welded'to the frame member. Y The handle member is then placed over the frame with the curved portion 7 at the left, as viewed in Fig.r4. The handle maythen be welded vto the frame member and to the. individual zigzag members. Grill B is now completed and may be removed from Vthe jig. f j

Using the same jig for the formation of grill A', a frame member 1 (identical withframe member 3') is placed-on the jig such that its hinge olsets ZYare disposed downwardly, not as before in the recesses 36 and 37 of groove 35, but rather in the recesses 33 and 341erc groove 32; Thus the gap 2 of thisV frame member 14 will lie in the groove 35, midway between recesses 36 and 37. Zigzag members 3 (identical with members 3') are placed over the frame member 1 in the same mannerVv asindicated with respect to frame member 1l and are similarly welded in place. Handle member 6 is placed over the'V frame Vto the right. The handle member 6 is similarly Welded to the frame member 1 and the zigzag members 3. Y The grill A is now completed. The two grills are connected together now by bending hinges Vi7 and 13 over the frame members 1 and 1 within the'ofsets 20 and 20.

The broiler or toaster shown here admits of obvious modifications; for example, the device as shown is preferably made with handles, butcould be made without them; grills are shown as zigzags but 'v of the two gridfmembers-rurri rthe-esamegeneral direction, i. e. lengthwise of said grid members. This last circumstance makes it-possible forfa-singlewelding jig, as above described; toserve'for'th'e manufactu-reoffboth grid members, which makes my two-grid 'structure' much 'lower in costthanr prior two grid`structuresY which obtain an equivalent or comparable number of crossings between their upper and lower "sets ofgrid--wires I claim:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a two-grid broiler or toaster, comprising tirst and-second equal-sizefsubstantially rectangular,wire-frames,v hinge means engagedA with opposite sides of said two frames forconnecting .the two frames together in side-,by-siderelation, the first frame having a set of identical equally spaced grid wires running in the same direction as said frameshinged side andrall formed in the plane of-said frame 'with matching undula-V tions, and the second frame having a. VsetJ ofridentical,

undulatory gridwires of the sameV number, configuration, spacing anddirection as those of the first frame, said lastnamed set of grid Wires havinglthe same orientationy to the second frames hinged 'side 'ashave the-first-narnedset of grid wires to the rst frames'unhingedvside such that the two grids, with -respect to their-duplicate setsof wires are series connected, whereby'luponlswinging of said grids upon said hingemeans into operative position, one superposed upon -the other, each corresponding pair of Vupper and lower undulatory grid-wires are disposed; in nonregistering lout-'of-'phase relation; so as to'mvake "aplurality of crossings with eachother.

2.' The hereindescribed method of making' a two-grid broiler oritoaster of the .type disclosed byuse-cfa single welding jig, which lconsists-in positioningithe' iirstbroilerlV frames opposite hinged Vand unhinged sides in correspond;

ingly spaced jig grooves,- placing the undlatory grid wires' thereon in accordance with the jigs iixed pattern,` welding said wires to the ends of said first frame, removingfrom said jig the so-formed grid, posit-ioning'thesecond broiler frames sides insaid jig grooves-iin reverse-relation, such that its hinged side'occupies the-groovewhiclr received` the unhinged side of the first frame, placing vthe undulatory wires thereon in accordancewiththejigstiixedfpatterm welding said wires to the ends of` said* second'l frame, removing from said jig the so-formedLgridand'hingedly connecting the hinge sides ofthe two frames; whereby the two grids, with respect to their-duplicatesets of undulatory Wires, are connected in series.

References Cited in the-file of thispatent UNITED STATESIPATENTS'- D. 164,107 Doblin July, 3'1, 1951' 430,401 Y Perkins June17, 1890 1,006,254 Miller Oct. 17,V 19,11Y 1,693,399 Nagin Nov. 27, 1928 1,908,050 Reed May' 9, 1933 1,945,165 smith Jan. 3 0; 1934 2,109,724 Genebach Mar: 1, 1938 2,297,825 Bobo VOct. 6, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS 363,792 Great Britain Dec. 31, 1931 950,112 YFranceY Mar. 14,` 1949' 

